Hawzah News Agency- The Head of the Russian State Library Vadim Duda received Ayatollah Alireza Arafi at the Great Library of Russia, expressing his condolences for the martyrdom of President Raisi and his companions in the helicopter crash. He said,” We have very long and close relations with the Islamic Republic of Iran, and we have organized joint programs for upcoming years.”

The Russian officials further noted,” We believe that national libraries are of great importance in the development of relations between the two countries, especially in a situation where many efforts are being made in the world to undermine cultural activities as a trivial issue.”

The head of the Russian Library Association went on to say,” We believe that libraries are centers that play a key role in preserving the history, culture and independence of countries.”

“ In the repository of the Russian state library, books are kept in more than 350 languages, among which there are 30 thousand volumes of Persian books, both old and manuscripts.” He added.

The head of the Russian State Library also introduced some historical works in Persian, including the copies of the Holy Quran printed in Russia, as well as an old dictionary with backgrounds from the past two to four centuries.

It should be mentioned that, in another part of this visit, the Head of Iran’s Seminary Ayatollah Alireza Arafi visited some book treasuries and also the large reading rooms of the Russian State Library.